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Pietro Maximoff was a native of the Eastern European country of Sokovia who grew up with his fraternal twin sister, Wanda. The country, which was embroiled in constant war and strife, became the base of operations for a HYDRA cell operated by Wolfgang von Strucker, who recruited Pietro and Wanda to take part in a series of tests involving the Scepter, giving the twins superpowers. While his sister received a number of mental abilities, Pietro acquired the ability to move at supersonic speeds and other physical features. When HYDRA fell, the twins joined the A.I. Ultron to continue their quest for revenge on Tony Stark, but eventually switched sides and helped the Avengers when they discovered Ultron's true intentions. Pietro then fought in the Battle of Sokovia alongside all of the other Avengers, but later sacrificed his own life to protect Hawkeye and a civilian boy named Costel, much to his sister's grief.

Contents

Biography

Early Life

Losing their Parents

"Wanda and Pietro Maximoff. Twins. Orphaned at ten when a shell collapsed on their apartment building. Sokovia has had a... rough history; it's nowhere special, but it's on the way to everywhere special."

Pietro Maximoff was born in the Eastern European country of Sokovia along with his twin sister, Wanda. At the age of 10, while having dinner with his family, a mortar shell hit their apartment building, killing the Maximoff's parents and trapping him and his sister. A second shell hit the apartment near them but did not go off. The Maximoff twins were left trapped under the rubble for two days staring at the unexploded shell reading the name on it, Stark Industries.

The Maximoff's at a protest

This horrifically traumatic experience gave the twins a great hatred for America, especially Tony Stark and later the Avengers. At the same time, Pietro became highly protective over his sister. They often took part and would lead protests against the Avengers. They dedicated much of their lives to this hatred and began searching for ways to bring down the Avengers. This constant political activity put them on S.H.I.E.L.D.'s radar as a potential threat to world security.[2]

When the twins reached adulthood, foreign powers began occupying Sokovia, driving the country into a state of turmoil. Pietro and Wanda took part in frequent riots to drive the foreign forces from their streets. What the twins did not realize was that the riots were orchestrated by HYDRA, who had taken up residence in the country and were using the riots to cover up their illegal experiments. The leader of the HYDRA forces in Sokovia, Wolfgang von Strucker, was attempting to harness the energy from the Scepter for a variety of uses, such as powering up weapons of mass destruction.

The Maximoffs in Strucker's base

List, desiring to see what effect the scepter's power would have on live humans, approached several Sokovian rioters, including Wanda and Pietro, offering them the opportunity to achieve the power needed to free their country from war. While Wanda expressed some doubt over Strucker's claims, Pietro was determined to free Sokovia and convinced his sister to accept.[3] While the other volunteers did not survive the Scepter's power, Pietro and Wanda experienced drastic changes. The scepter unlocked latent supernatural powers within the pair. Wanda developed a number of mental powers such as telekinesis, hypnosis, and energy projection, and Pietro was now able to move at superhuman speed.[3][4]

Soon after the Maximoff's abilities had been unlocked, the Avengers arrived in Sokovia and raided the HYDRA Research Base, attempting to defeat HYDRA and take the Scepter. As the alarms sounded, Doctor List recommended to Baron Wolfgang von Strucker that they send the twins to fight the Avengers, but Strucker refused. In the confusion, Wanda and Pietro escaped from their holding cells, and though inexperienced, were able to use their powers to evade the guards and escape to defend the base.

While Wanda defended Baron Wolfgang von Strucker inside the base, Pietro found Hawkeye outside attempting to use an explosive arrow to destroy a HYDRA bunker. Maximoff used his powers to run in front of the arrow and caught it in mid-air before knocking Hawkeye off his feet and mocking him. In the confusion, Hawkeye was shot and nearly killed by a cannon, but the Hulk defended him and destroyed the bunker. Pietro then attacked Captain America, using his speed to try to stop the Avengers' advance and to protect the base.

Returning to the inside of the base, Pietro found his sister hexing Tony Stark, and forcing him to see a future involving the death of all the Avengers. Pietro recommended that they kill him, as they had intended to do for years, but Wanda refused, allowing Stark to steal the Scepter as she had had a vision of what he would do with it. Although Pietro disagreed with this decision, he did not argue with his sister. The Avengers won the fight and HYDRA was seemingly defeated, forcing the twins to escape the base before going on the run.[2]

A Misguided Partnership

The Maximoffs hide out in Sokovia

"You need patience. Need to see the bigger the picture.""I don't see the big picture, I have a little picture. I take it out and look at it, every day."

With the HYDRA Research Base and Baron Wolfgang von Strucker captured, the Maximoffs returned to Sokovia and Pietro provided for them by becoming a thief, stealing items for himself, Wanda and the local people. Pietro handed out the items, including a football for Costel and a dress for Costel's sister Zrinka. Wanda mocked Pietro's attempts to flirt with all the women in Sokovia and warned him he would get shot if he kept stealing. As Pietro began to question Wanda's decision to let Tony Stark go free, Costel approached the pair and told them that Iron Man was waiting in a nearby church for them.[5]

Wanda and Pietro went to the church and found a "man" waiting for them wearing a red cloak who spoke about how much he enjoyed the church. When Wanda questioned why she could not read his mind, the "man" revealed himself to be Ultron, an artificial intelligence robot designed by Tony Stark using the technology within the Scepter. Ultron explained that he intended to destroy the Avengers and wanted the Maximoffs to help him complete his plans. Ultron then led them from the church and back to Baron Strucker's HYDRA Research Base.

Ultron revealed that he had taken over the base and was using it to create an army of Ultron Sentries; knowing that with their powers, they could tear the opposition apart. When they discussed the reasons for killing the Avengers, Pietro told Ultron the story of how they had lost their parents due to a Stark Industries' missile. Although they were initially unsure, Ultron assured them that they would use their powers to kill the Avengers; noting that while he and Pietro could defeat them with strength, Wanda would be able to tear them apart from the inside.[2]

Pietro and Wanda accompanied Ultron in acquiring Ulysses Klaue's supply of Vibranium. The Maximoffs entered the Salvage Yard first and shut off the lights before Pietro disarmed Klaue and confronted him. Klaue remained unimpressed by the Maximoffs, having heard of them already. He noted that he was saddened to hear of Wolfgang von Strucker's death, then mocked the pair for their reaction to the news.

Eventually, Klaue told the pair that he would have no respect for them if Wanda used her powers to make him see what he feared, a cuttlefish, and he wished to speak to the man in charge. In response, Ultron threw Klaue through a window and introduced himself. Ultron then forced Klaue to sell him his stockpile of Vibranium in exchange for billions of dollars. When Klaue noted that Ultron was quoting Tony Stark, the comparison threw Ultron into a rage, resulting in him slicing off Klaus's left arm and kicking him down a flight of stairs.

When the Avengers arrived, Captain America attempted to convince the Maximoff's to walk away while they still had a chance, but they both refused. Iron Man attempted to learn what Ultron's plan was, but this resulted in a fight breaking out. Pietro attacked Captain America and Thor, using his incredible speed to dodge their attacks. At one stage, Pietro tried to use Mjølnir against the team, but was unsuccessful and thrown across the room and knocked back by Captain America. He soon recovered and injured Captain America by throwing him across the room, before he then snuck up behind Black Widow and knocked her out, leaving them vulnerable to his sisters attacks.

When Wanda attempted to hex Hawkeye, she was outsmarted and subdued by him with a taser arrow to the head. Pietro saved her in the nick of time and threw Hawkeye through a window. He took her outside Klaue's base and tried to go back inside to kill Hawkeye, but she insisted that she was alright and wished to continue with the plan. She caught sight of Bruce Banner and managed to hex him as well, causing him to transform into the Hulk and go on a rampage in Johannesburg, the twins used the distraction to their advantage and escaped in the chaos.[2]

Changing Sides

When the trio arrived in Seoul, Ultron used the Scepter to indoctrinate scientist Helen Cho, forcing her to use the vibranium in synchrony with the Cradle to build a new, more powerful body for Ultron. As Ultron's consciousness was being uploaded into the body, Wanda curiously took the opportunity to explore Ultron's mind and was horrified to learn of Ultron's true plans, which involved the genocide of humanity in its entirety. With Pietro, Wanda abandoned Ultron and left the facility, much to the automaton's rage.[2]

The twins attempted to escape Seoul, but as they made their way through the city, they spotted a news report showing that the Avengers were attempting to steal the Cradle, and battling Ultron and his army in the middle of the city, endangering thousands of lives. Refusing to allow the people of Seoul to be put in danger, the Maximoffs decided to assist the Avengers in the fight.

The twins found and assisted Captain America in fighting off Ultron on a moving passenger train. Pietro charged onto the train and knocked Ultron back while Wanda trapped him inside by twisting the metal to put a defensive barrier between Ultron and the Captain. However Ultron responded by firing a blast into the front of the train, killing the driver and destroying the controls of the train before escaping, leaving the train charging straight forwards the centre of the city of Seoul and forwards the people standing in its path.

Maximoff saves people from the train

With the train now completely out of control and heading to the middle of the city, Captain America ordered Pietro to use his incredible speed to move the civilians out of it's path while Wanda stopped it. Pietro ran as fast as he physically could and pushed everyone he came across out of the path of the train. Despite the train still traveling at its full speed and Pietro using every ounce of energy he had to keep moving at such a speed, he still managed to stay ahead and saved dozens of lives before Wanda was finally able to stop the train in the centre of the city.

Maximoff recovers from his run

With the train now stopped, Pietro stopped to rest as he could barely stand after running so fast for so long. When Captain America revealed that the Cradle and Ultron's would-be body had been sent to Tony Stark for analysis, Wanda was disturbed, aware that Stark would attempt to utilize the body rather than destroy it in order to correct his own folly. Although the Captain was reluctant to accept this as a possibility, Wanda compared Stark and Ultron and made key comparisons with their mind sets.[2][2]

Birth of Vision

The Maximoffs were taken to Avengers Tower by Steve Rogers. Once there, they discovered that Tony Stark was attempting to program Ultron's being in the Cradle with J.A.R.V.I.S.. Rogers ordered Stark to terminate the program as it was too dangerous, Stark refused, so Maximoff used his incredible speed to unplug and damage the machine. As he took a moment, he noticed a bullet coming up from the ground below him. Before he could react, the glass he was standing on shattered and he was captured by Clint Barton, who mocked him using the same phrase Maximoff taunted him with earlier.

Rogers' and Stark's argument hit a boiling point and the pair began fighting until Thor arrived and used his lightning to power the Cradle, causing the being inside to be born. The being briefly attacked the Avengers before overlooking New York City and calming down. The being apologized and explained that he was not Ultron or J.A.R.V.I.S., but a new Vision. He told them that they needed to go to stop Ultron. He ultimately gained their trust when he handed Thor Mjølnir. Maximoff and the rest of the Avengers could only look on in shock and confusion.

Pietro and Wanda then agreed to help the Avengers to stop Ultron and save Sokovia, where the A.I. would be enacting his final plan. Pietro took a new uniform and threw a red jacket at Wanda for her to wear, and joined the Avengers on the Quinjet as Captain America gave a speech where he informed the team that their priority was getting the people of Sokovia out of harms way before Ultron could destroy their homes and their lives. Pietro stayed silent, still unsure of trusting the Avengers in the long term. However, he shared their intention to save the lives of his friends.[2]

Evacuating Citizens

Pietro and his sister joined the Avengers in evacuating the citizens out of Sokovia before the upcoming battle. While the rest of the team quietly moved the people out, Maximoff's method of evacuating them is more aggressive, charging into a police station and ordering them to clear the city. When none of the police in the station listened to him, Maximoff returned and fired a machine gun into the air, demanding they hurry up.

Quicksilver went into different houses and told the people who were still there to leave the city and bring nothing with them. He then went to a young woman and told her to evacuate. Quicksilver then went back to her and asked that he might see her later, and then went to help other civilians.

Seeing what the Avengers were trying to do, Ultron unleashed his army of Ultron Sentries upon the civilians. Quicksilver readied himself and charged into the robots, the speed of which he impacted them ripped them apart in a millisecond. When the city started to rise due to the device Ultron had planted inside it, Maximoff, alongside the Avengers, watched in horror while Ultron explained his grand plan to turn the city into a giant meteor and destroy all human life on the planet so only he and his metal army remained to rule the Earth.

Using his speed, Quicksilver took out numerous robots as he charged across the city tearing them apart and keeping the people still in the city safe. While Iron Man flew around the city and worked out a plan to stop Ultron's scheme, Captain America gave a speech to the team in which he ordered them to do whatever they could to destroy the Ultron Sentries, telling them not to even let death stop them. Quicksilver took a moment to catch his breath before continuing to fight.

Before long, Quicksilver came across Scarlet Witch and Hawkeye who were working together in their own battle against the Ultron Sentries. As they walked to their next mission, Quicksilver charged in and picked up his sister before running away with her in his arms and teasing Hawkeye, calling him an old man and telling him to keep up. Hawkeye considered shooting Quicksilver in the back for being such an annoying teammate, and continued to jog far behind them. When Black Widow regrouped with the Avengers, Captain America told her that they fight robots today. Quicksilver rushed by and joked that next month might be better for them; and then rushed off again.

Maximoff is accidentally shot by Police

Quicksilver carried Scarlet Witch into the center of a fight between the local police and some Ultron Sentries. The worked together to tear the machines apart while the police chief ordered his men not to fire upon the Maximoffs. However, during the battle, he was accidentally shot in the arm by one of the officers. The wound was minor and non-life threatening, but Maximoff still turned to the officer who had fired and glared at him for ripping his uniform.[2]

Reinforcements

As the battle became more and more intense, Captain America became focused on finding a way to save the remaining citizens. In response, Nick Fury and Maria Hill arrived on a Helicarrier and used evacuation pods to get the people to safety. Maximoff watched this unfold and turned to Rogers, asking if this is the true S.H.I.E.L.D., Rogers told him that this is what S.H.I.E.L.D. is supposed to be, which Maximoff happily accepted.

Protecting the Key

The team regrouped around the church in the centre of the city, where Ultron had placed his device's key, which if activated would drop Novi Grad upon the Earth and cause a devastating explosion. Ultron flew outside the church. When Thor challenged him to a rematch, Ultron responded by showing off his entire remaining army of Ultron Sentries vastly outnumbering the Avengers. The team remained together as they prepared for the final showdown.

Ultron unleashed his sentries upon the Avengers all at once in his attempt to activate the key. Quicksilver and the Avengers fought them off with every bit of strength they had. Quicksilver darted around the arena, ripping the Ultron Sentries apart as quickly as he could. Before long, Ultron himself attempted to attack Vision, but with the help of Iron Man, Thor and the Hulk, the A.I. was overpowered. A heavily injured Ultron was thrown across the city.

The team decided it was time for them to escape and Captain America ordered them to sweep the city for any remaining drones before getting on the escape pods. Scarlet Witch decided to stay behind and protect the key from Ultron. Quicksilver was reluctant to leave his sister but she told him she could take care of herself and told him to get all the civilians on the evacuation ships and to come back for her. He then proceeded to tease her about her bossy attitude by reminding her that he was still the elder twin.[2]

Self-Sacrifice

During the battle, Ultron hijacked the Avengers' Quinjet and began to fire its guns at civilians. Quicksilver bravely used his powers to save countless lives. When Quicksilver saw Ultron targeting Hawkeye and a civilian boy using a minigun-barrage from the Avengers' Quinjet, Quicksilver ran to aid them without a second thought.

Running into the path of the bullets, Quicksilver used his own body to shield them from the gunfire, proving himself a true hero, and a true Avenger. The bullet-ridden Maximoff then took one last glance at Hawkeye, remarking if he saw that coming before collapsing and dying from his wounds, much to his sister's sorrow. His body was taken by Captain America from Sokovia onto an escape pod.

Quicksilver was avenged when Scarlet Witch destroyed Ultron's primary body, and when Ultron's consciousness was annihilated by Vision. In honor of his sacrifice, Hawkeye and his family decided to name their newest son Nathaniel Pietro Barton.[2]

Personality

Pietro is a rather cocky, arrogant, impatient, tenacious, and quick-tempered person. These personality traits are likely a side affect of his super-speed, due to thinking and acting at a much faster rate than most. Despite this, Pietro has a desire for peace as he wished to save his country to the point he was willing to be experimented on by HYDRA, giving him the formidable powers he now possesses.

He also deeply cares for Wanda and the two shared a deep bond though they would occasionally bicker like normal siblings. He looked after his sister and relied on her for support. Wanda was devastated by Pietro's death at the hands of Ultron, to the point she said to Ultron that she just 'died'.

Pietro originally desired to destroy the Avengers and in particular, Tony Stark for revenge, to the point they decided to join Ultron when he said he shared the same goal. However, Pietro chose to betray the A.I. when he found out about his true goal, showing that he is willing to put aside his personal grudges for the greater good.

Out of his relationships with the Avengers, his most complicated was with Hawkeye. Ever since they first met, the two had constantly competed, fought, and taunted each other. Though this initially started out as hatred, their relationship eventually becomes a friendly rivalry and they became good friends and teammates through Pietro helping the Avengers, while still continuing their friendly banter during the Battle of Sokovia. He later proves himself a true hero and Avenger by sacrificing his life to protect Hawkeye and a civilian boy from the Quinjet's gunfire. Hawkeye later named his newborn son, Nathaniel Pietro Barton, showing that he deeply respected Pietro for his choices.

Powers and Abilities

Powers

Superhuman Speed: Quicksilver gained the ability to run at extremely high speeds due to HYDRA's experiments with the Scepter. He was able to think, act, move and perceive in seconds or less, far faster than normal people could even perceive. As such, he could perceive the world as moving in slow motion, especially when he is moving at super speed, while all others could see of him as he used his speed was a vibrating blur of motion. His power caused him to generate an aura of blue, white and transparent energy currents and mist-like shapes, much like fire or wind, leaving behind a trail of it as he runs. When imprisoned by Wolfgang von Strucker, he was able to move from one end of his cell to another in less than a fraction of a second. His abilities made him nigh unbeatable in battle, with his speed giving him the ability to generate extreme force and momentum, as he could hit harder than normal humans while moving at super speed. In his confrontation with the Avengers, he managed to avoid multiple attacks and took down Captain America in seconds. This ability made him able to outmaneuver someone as fast and perceptive as Hawkeye with absolute ease, catching his arrows and sending him flying through the air multiple times. It was only his ignorance towards Mjølnir that allowed Quicksilver to be caught off guard, knocking him down for awhile. Shortly afterward, however, he took down Captain America again. He used his speed to quickly save Scarlet Witch from Hawkeye after knocking him down as well.

Extreme Force Generation: Quicksilver had enhanced momentum, which allowed him to enhance the force in his attacks, strikes, impacts and collisions, often propelling objects or people several feet, that he used to compensate for his average human strength. He was, therefore, able to match Captain America's far superior strength in their confrontation, allowing Quicksilver send the latter flying by colliding into him and knocking him to the floor with one punch while moving at super-speed. During the Battle of Sokovia, Quicksilver used this ability again to dismantle numerous Ultron Sentries by colliding with them at great speeds. This force, however, was not enough to injure Thor, who was barely affected by Quicksilver smashing into him at supersonic speeds. Quicksilver's aura seems to protect those he carries even though they lack his enhanced physiology. Quicksilver can move multiple people in an instant, without risking whiplash injury or damage caused by high-speed air friction.

Increased Metabolism: Quicksilver has a hyper-accelerated metabolic rate, enhancing his physicality and ability to move and act while also making him less able to be stunned by attacks or injuries, as he quickly recovered from the pain of being shot in the arm and could still act as if he were not injured.

Improved Thermal Homeostasis: Quicksilver can function in a stable internal environment that requires constant monitoring and adjustments to his condition that changes constantly, meaning he can resist the effects of friction and temperature, while moving at incredible speeds.

Superhuman Reflexes: Quicksilver's increased speed also augmented his reaction time, allowing him to react to danger and events much faster than a normal human, to the point where he could catch bullets in mid-air. As a result, Quicksilver tended to see the world around him as if it were in slow motion, especially when he is moving at super speed. However even with his enhanced reflexes, Quicksilver can still be caught by surprise, such as his fight against Hawkeye during the confrontation between Iron Man and Captain America at Avengers Tower.

Abilities

Bilingualism: Pietro speaks his native Sokovian, as well as fluent English (albeit with a heavy Sokovian accent).

Trivia

In the comics, Quicksilver is a mutant and a founding member of the Brotherhood of Mutants, being initially identified as the son of Magneto (Erik Lehnsherr) and his then-wife Magda Lehnsherr (née Eisenhardt) in Vision and the Scarlet Witch #4 (1983), 19 years after Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver's first appearance. Magda leaves Erik while pregnant and takes sanctuary at Mount Wundagore in Transia, the home of the High Evolutionary, where she gives birth and later dies. The High Evolutionary then places them instead in the care of the Romani couple, Django and Marya Maximoff, who raise them as their own children. Prior to that, in Giant-Size Avengers #1 (1974), they were revealed to be the biological children of Golden Age superheroes The Whizzer and Miss America, a fact that was later retconned. In Avengers & X-Men: AXIS #7 (2014), it was revealed that Pietro and his sister have no blood ties to Magneto and are not related after all. In Uncanny Avengers #4 (2015), it is confirmed not only they are not related to Magneto but they are not even mutants, as the High Evolutionary genetically altered them as infants, giving them their powers, before returning them to their true parents, the Maximoffs.[6]